Children of Darkness
by DaniDBR11
Summary: A new enemy threatens both the magical and mortal world. A revolution has started, and the Sanctuaries are needed more than ever. To defeat this uncanny foe, Skulduggery will have to face the ghosts of his past, and Valkyrie, the dangers of her future. The Ancients are way more mysterious and secretive than they appear, and the duo is about to discover that first-hand...
1. Prologue

Valkyrie and the boy stood side by side as they entered the temple. He was rather beautiful, with black hair, blue eyes and pale skin, he must have been a little younger than her, and even though he was just a ghost, he had a firm grip of Valkyrie's hand.

The once magnificent temple was now a bunch of ruins, but she could still see pictures and ancient murals hidden in the mist of the collapsed walls. Some unidentified species of plant grew on what was left of the walls, and blue fireflies flew directly on top of their heads, as if welcoming them. One of them landed on Valkyries arm and she gave out a little shriek, but the boy gently shooed the creature away.

-Don't be afraid-he said-nothing here is going to hurt you, remember?

She gave a small nod and they continued walking, soon reaching a beautiful mural with blue and silver pictures drawn in it. It didn't make sense, how could it be there? The temple was floating in the middle of pure darkness, but they both could see it as plain as day. How come something so sacred and ancient be stashed away in a place like this?

-This is us-the boy said, pointing to the mural.

-Us?-she asked-But my picture isn't there!

-Look closely. Open your mind and you will see.

Valkyrie looked again: the left part of the mural showed a man holding two babies, in the middle part, both Valkyrie and the boy stood in front of a city, but they were separated by a line, and one of the cities seemed much modern then the other, and the right part…

The right side showed the same picture as the middle, put the boy's side had been completely destroyed and there was a crack on Valkyrie's side. She turned to the boy, suddenly feeling scared.

-What happened?-she asked- What's _going _to happen?

-It all starts now, just like it did with me. You will face a great challenge and will succeed, but it will come with a price.

-Which is…?

-That will be for you to decide.

Suddenly, the whole temple started to shake and the boy's image began to fade away. Valkyrie became aware of the sound of the floor fading away in the darkness.

-Remember, Darquesse.-the boy said-There is ALWAYS a choice, and when the time comes to make it, we will be by your side, just like we always have.

The ground around them suddenly collapsed and the boy's image faded. Valkyrie tried to run for cover, but it was of no use. The temple was doomed.

-Wait!-she screamed-Please, come back! What do you mean by ''a choice''? What do you know about Darquesse? Please, COME BACK! I NEED TO KNO…

She didn't have time to finish the phrase when the ground below her gave away and she fell to the everlasting darkness. She screamed so loud that her ears hurt, and just when she thought she was about to trapped there forever…

She crashed on the floor, her whole body covered in sweat and the scream still ringing in her throat. It was a good thing her parents and Alison were away; otherwise they might have thought that a demon was after her. Slowly, she pulled herself up and examined her surroundings: she was in the guest room in Gordon's manor, it was 2 AM and a violent storm was raging outside. Her parent's had gone to England to do some sightseeing with Alison, and Valkyrie had requested she stayed on Haggard. According to them, she was staying on a friend's house, but she had decided to sleep on Gordon's house until they came back. She had been staying there for the past 3 days, and that's when the nightmare started.

Every night, she had the same dream. The same boy, the same temple, the same darkness. She was sure she knew the boy, but that was it. Everything else was a mystery to her. He talked about Darquesse, about choices, about _them_, whoever they were.

She decided to look out the window. For the last week, Ireland had suffered a string of rain and storms, as if the country was preparing for a disaster, but Valkyrie didn't care. She had always loved storms. She used to watch them sitting on this very window was she little, warm and safe in her uncle's arms. That had been a long time ago, but she still missed the happy times she had had with Gordon. She decided to go to his study; after all, he was always complaining that she should visit him more, and certainly echo-stones did not care about chatting at 2 AM in the morning, right?

* * *

On the other side of the street, Madame Mist watched as the girl left the window. Her spider powers had allowed her vision to be 8 times as powerful as that of a human. She had been watching the child for about an hour, and could not avoid feeling pity when she had woken up screaming. She was strong, so powerful and at the same time, so vulnerable, so _human_.

When she was Valkyrie's age, Mist had not even started her studies as a Child of the Spider, let alone faced so much danger, destruction and loss as the girl had. But despise that, she survived. She was strong. She was kind. She was unstoppable.

She was everything they needed.

Suddenly, a black car stopped in front of Mist and its door's opened, welcoming her inside. Before she left, she took one last look at the manor and said:

-Rest easy, my dear girl. A storm is coming, and when it arrives, you are going to need every bit of strength you have. Dark times are coming, but your light will guide you. Your light will guide us all.

Then, she entered the car and left.

* * *

**So, what do you think? I have been wanting to do this fic for a LONG, LONG time, and I hope you guys will enjoy it :)**


	2. A new day, a new case

It was a foggy, cold afternoon in London. Traffic was raging and in every street, tourists were swearing and trying to find shelter from the rain.

And the worst part was that Tanith Low had missed it all.

She had grown up on that place. It was only natural that the sight of it made her remember her childhood. The fights with her brother, her parent's laugh, the smell of the river and the factories, it seemed like a lifetime ago…for the real Tanith, that is. To the remnant, it meant nothing. It had been born on a place that was dead to the memory of man, and the other places it had known were destroyed by its brothers and sisters. It was not good that it was feeling this things, it meant that _she _was fighting back.

The small part in her soul that was still Tanith wanted to run, to scream and fight the creature who had consumed her. That small part of her wanted to run back to Ireland, hug her friends and apologize for the bad things she had done as the Remnant. That small part of who still had the capacity to _feel_.

After a while, the Remnant managed to push all that aside and continue its mission. If their source had been right, the artifact they were looking for was somewhere in the country. The only problem is that they had no idea _where_ in England it was located, but with a little torture-and-threat, anything could be resolved.

-You okay, honey-bunny?-Billy Ray Sanguine asked-You seem a little…distracted.

Tanith resist the urge to sigh. She did not like him, not really. He was arrogant, cocky and never seemed to run out of stupid lovey-dovey nicknames, but he was useful, in other ways. He had contacts in almost every city in the world, and, should trouble arise, she could just snap her fingers and he would defend her with his life. Humans called it love, she called it stupidity.

-I'm fine, sweetie. I just missed the city, that's all.

-Really? That's all?

-That's all-she said, and kissed him in the cheek-Now; let's find that artifact, shall we?

He smiled, took her hand and then kissed her on the lips.

Both Tanith and the Remnant tried their best not to spit.

* * *

Valkyrie ran as fast as she could. The rain was falling fast and she had already tripped twice. Little pools of water and mud had formed on the small gardens that lead to front gate of Gordon's house. Skulduggery had stopped the Bentley outside the house, claiming that ''the mud was going to ruin the paint''.

Finally, she reached the car; put Skulduggery immediately closed the door.

-Skulduggery, what the hell?-she shouted-Open the door!

-Absolutely not!-he said, putting his head out of the window - You're all muddy and filthy!

-You're willing to let me out in the rain because of your _car_?

-Of course.

She sighted, took a deep breath and stretched out her arms. With a few more movements, she got all of the water out of her body and used it to create a big bubble. After focusing for a few seconds, she dropped it right on Skulduggery's head.

-When did you learn to do that?-he asked as she got on the car and sat next to him.

-I've been practicing.

-It seems like you have doing more than just ''practice''.

-You think I'm lying?

-No, I'm just saying you are not telling the truth.

-It IS the truth! I have been practicing! I just have been doing it a lot!

It was true, ever since the Death Bringer incident 10 months ago, Valkyrie had spending all of her free time practicing her elemental magic. She had gotten extremely better at it, impressing even Skulduggery. She had told him he was doing it because she didn't want to be so dependable of necromancy and using it after the Irish Temple had been burned down was dangerous, but it was a lie. She wished to get stronger in case she was in danger and didn't need to get Darquesse's help. She had seen the damage her fight with Lord Vile had caused, who knew what could happen next time? What if someone she loved got hurt? What if she died? It was a risk she couldn't take. If she did get stronger, she would have to learn to tame that power. Either way, Darquesse would not win. Valkyrie wouldn't let her.

After he finally got all of the water out of his head and hat, Skulduggery finally began driving. After almost an hour, the grim-looking city of Roarhaven appeared before them. Valkyrie never could understand that place; it was like the city itself was angry at something. Few people dared to go there. It was lonely, dangerous and scary as hell.

It was also the perfect to hide something.

Three years ago the previous Irish Sanctuary had been destroyed and then rebuilt in Roarhaven. She knew that a long time ago, the first Sanctuary was supposed to have been build there, but it was eventually moved to Dublin. Why, nobody knew. It was very ironic that after years of rejection, Roarhaven had become one of the most important places on Earth.

Valkyrie and Skulduggery stepped out of the car, and as they walked the road to the Sanctuary, Valkyrie noticed a spider walking on her arm and screamed, shaking her arm to get it out. When she was done, Skulduggery was facing her with a puzzled look.

-Valkyrie Cain-he said- the Last of the Ancients, the God Killer, the Dimension Crosser, is afraid of a little spider?

-Shut up.

They continued to walk, but after a few minutes, she turned to him:

-The Dimension Crosser? Really?

-It certainly does have its ring.

-No, it doesn't. It sounds like something from a really bad super-hero comic book.

-Have youever read a bad super-hero comic book?

-No.

-Have you read any super-hero comic book _at all_?

-Why would I? We're practically super-heroes. We have powers, an awesome car, cool names and fancy clothes. All that's missing are the capes.

-No capes. Capes are evil. Just ask Ghastly to tell you about the ''Oliver Night'' incident and you'll understand.

-Why do I get the feeling I'm going to laugh?

-You will. You should not, but you will. It's a tragic story, really. He was a good sorcerer, Oliver. A little obsessed with his clothes and his ego, but a good sorcerer still.

-Sounds like someone I know.

- ...my hat never got me killed.

-Skulduggery, if I dropped your hat in a pool of lava, you would jump in a second.

-It's my special hat!

-So was the last one, and the one before that. Both were destroyed by some crazy nut-job trying to kill us.

-Excuse me, -said a voice next to them- but are you here to talk with the Elders, or just to discuss tragic pieces of clothing?

- Oh, sorry, Tipstaff –said Valkyrie. They had been so busy talking that they had not noticed the Administrator standing right in front of them- We're here to meet with the Grand Mage. He asked us to.

-I know. Please, follow me.

Erskine Ravel's office was located deep in the heart of the new Sanctuary, and they had to walk a long time to get there. As usual, it was full of people running around, doing something important. However, they all stopped when Skulduggery and Valkyrie passed. Ever since they had left Mist, Ravel and Ghastly waiting for then in the Sanctuary to receive their medals, nasty rumors had been following then, especially Skulduggery. People said that, since two of his best friends were in the Council of Elders, he was using Sanctuary resources whenever he liked. They said that he didn't need to obey the Elders anymore. ''He always made his own rules''-Valkyrie head one man said- ''But now, it's worse. You saw the way he acted when the Cain girl was attacked by the Death Bringer. Thank God we at least have Mist there to keep an eye on him.'' It was not the gossip that scared her, people had always been afraid of Skulduggery, it was the fact that they were stepping over Ravel and Ghastly to defend Mist. The Children of the Spiders had practically lived in a dark hole for the last two thousand years, and if people were starting to support _them_, things were really bad.

-We have arrived. - Tipstaff said, interrupting her thoughts. - The Grand Mage is waiting for you.

-Are Ghastly and Mist here? - She asked.

-Elder Bespoke is, but he is too busy to talk to you and as for Elder Mist, I haven't seen her all day.

-Ravel didn't ask for them?

-No, only for you two.

-Curious. - Skulduggery said. – Why would he do that?

-I believe it is better for you to ask him.

Tipstaff left and they entered the office. It had 3 gigantic bookshelves that covered almost all of the walls, a beautiful mahogany table, a red carpet decorated with golden drawings and, of course, the Grand Mage himself, reading something on his desk. He immediately put aside the paper he was reading and asked her and Skulduggery to sit. Something was wrong; he looked worried, like the grim reaper himself was standing next to him.

-Valkyrie, Skulduggery, I'm so glad you could make it.

-Where are Ghastly and Mist? Why aren't they here?

-Calm down, Valkyrie. I'm sure you had a good reason for not calling them. Right, Erskine?

He remained silent.

-Right, Erskine?

-I don't trust Mist, not a bit, you know that. And Ghastly…he's too busy trying to find Tanith to focus. I will them as soon as I have time, but for now, this is for your eyes only.

He handed them a small pile of papers. Police reports, newspapers clippings, photos, nothing that seemed important. That is, until they started reading. Most of them were reports about strange fires and disappearances that were happening around the Dublin area and the photos were of the burning buildings and the missing people, which, strangely enough, were all about Valkyrie's age. Sure, they were horrible, but were they horrible enough for the Ravel to be worried about them?

-You think these are the work of the same person? –asked Skulduggery. He assumed it was one of the normal cases they used to get: track down and arrest a criminal.

-No, they are too organized to be made by one person. The kidnappings started about a week ago, and seemed harmless at first. We thought it might have been some mortal serial killer targeting teenagers, nothing the mortals couldn't handle. And then, the fires started. One of the scientists that examined then discovered that they were all started by magic.

-A magic explosion? You mean like the one that destroyed the last Sanctuary?

-No, these ones are totally different. - Skulduggery said. - The Desolation Engine was a normal weapon. Extremely dangerous, yes, but normal. To create a magic explosion, or Wizard Fire, it's a very messy process involving symbols, elemental magic and a lot of luck. Ch…_that woman _could create something like that, with the help of an Elemental. It is not something one can do alone, and if goes wrong, it could pretty much kill you and everyone and everything near it. Whoever did this knew what they were doing.

He did it again; he refused to say her name. They didn't talk about China Sorrows, it was a forbidden topic. He had disappeared for 3 months after they had found out her secret, and then, one day, Valkyrie had found the Bentley parked near her house, with Skulduggery inside. She did not ask where he had been and he didn't speak about it. Things had tuned back to normal, and Skulduggery was satisfied that way. After everything he had gone though, she didn't want to upset him even more. They had to focus on what was happening right now, or else, they would both lose their minds. There always people to save and villains to defeat, which was enough to keep them distracted. That was one of the good things about the magical world; it never stopped for anybody, not even for the Skeleton Detective and The Last of the Ancients.

-As I was saying, - Ravel continued. - Someone is causing this, someone clever. Each day there are more fires and the double of disappearances. The mortals are beginning to get suspicious; even _they_ know that those are not normal attacks. Our whole society is in danger, and with the other Sanctuaries pressuring us, I can't tell anything to anybody. I want you to find whoever is doing this as fast as possible and then arrest them.

-All right, but where do we start?

-At the location of the last explosion, the Seabridge warehouse complex. Scrutinous already cleared the area, so you should have no trouble with unexpected visitors.

Skulduggerry nodded and they left the office. Valkyrie was so busy thinking about their new case that she didn't even mind the whispers.

-So, do you have any idea who is doing this, or why?

-I haven't the slightest. And you?

-Nothing. What's really troubling me is how Ravel didn't trust the others. I understand Mist, but Ghastly? I mean, you guys have been best friends since before the war! He should at least trust someone; it just wasn't smart of him.

-Valkyrie, if people were smart, we would be out of business. As for Ghastly, as much as he is my friend, I agree with Ravel. He only agreed to become an Elder with the condition that he would be able to look for Tanith, and that is what he's doing now. Don't you want to find her?

-More than anything in the whole world, but sitting here won't help! We need to go out there and actually find her!

-What we need is to keep her as far away from you as possible. They need us here, and here is where we are going to stay. Ravel has a team of the best agents in Ireland looking for her.

-_We_ are the best agents in Ireland. - She said as she entered the Bentley.

-Exactly, and that is why they need us here.

-You are the most confused person I've ever meet, did someone ever told you that?

-''Confused'' is practically a complement compared to some of the things people have said to me.

-Like what?

-Trust me; it is better if you do not know. They would be too hard for an innocent girl like you, and you are the least innocent person I have ever met.

-''Least innocent person in the world'' is practically a complement compared to some of the things people have said to me.

He looked at her, and she had the feelings that, if he had eyes, they would be widening.

-Good God, I have created a monster.

_You have no idea-_said the Voice inside her. Fortunately, it had been low that not even she heard it.

* * *

It would have taken them hours to find the warehouse if it weren't for the magical aura that still hanged in the place. The minute they stepped into the complex, Valkyrie felt like she had been hit by an electrical shot. Skulduggery explained to her that Wizard Fire always left a huge magical trail near the place it had hit, and sometimes the energy was so strong that it was able to make sorcerers fell sick or even faint. According to the reports, even the mortals had felt it; there weren't many things that were able to leave a magical trail enough for anyone to notice.

After they finished navigating the maze of buildings and seagull poop, they arrived on their destination. There was nothing there, just a ginormous hole in the ground, big enough to swallow Central Park. The explosion had happened 2 days ago, but there was still a lot of ash falling from the sky, and the smell of smoke was making Valkyrie sick. Everything had been destroyed.

-No wonder people saw the explosion, even in a place as far away from the city as this one. Was anything inside?

-No, this part of the complex is empty and there was no one there last night. The magical pulse reached the entrance, so that's how the security guards realized something was wrong.

-But if they wanted to create an explosion this big, why do it in an abandoned place? - Said Valkyrie as they descended to the center of the crater. - Maybe they wanted to scare people?

-Perhaps, but I doubt it. All the explosions occurred in places like this one, and if it weren't for the pulse, no one would have noticed them. It was a risk they had to take.

-A risk to _what?_ What if…they were practicing for the real thing? Training for a bigger target?

Skulduggery nodded.

-We just have to find out _who_ that target it. It won't be an easy task. Wizard Fire can be created by anyone, if they wish to do so, but it's been rarely used since Mevolent was defea…WATCH OUT!

Something landed on the center of the crater and knocked sent both Skulduggery and Valkyrie flying. She managed to land without breaking anything, and managed to take a look at her attacker. He was about her size and was wearing jeans and a black hood. He turned around to face her, but she only managed to see his eyes, which were an icy-blue color, and a necklace with symbol of an angel dangling from his neck. She pushed the air with all of her strength, but he jumped and landed right behind her. She didn't even have time to dodge before the wave of fire hit her. Before she could get up, a pillar of stone rose right where she was laying and threw her to air. Skulduggery managed to grab her and run to the back of a warehouse before the fire hit her again.

-Are you okay? - He asked.

-No, I'm not. Who the heck was that guy? I've never seen elemental magic so strong before!

-Me neither. He even managed to burn down your coat.

He was right. Valkyrie ran her hand over back and felt the burning fabric. This wasn't right, Ghastly's coats were made to withstand almost anything, but the fire had been so strong that it had managed to burn right through it!

She and Skulduggery ran at him at the same time, both throwing fireballs. He was flying high in the air, like Skulduggery had done many times. Valkyrie began to push the air in a way that it was actually pushing _her. _Skulduggery knelled down, she jumped on his back and he suddenly got up, making her jump so high that was face to face with the attacker. Her fireball was ready, but suddenly, he grabbed her throat with strength that he was literally holding her. If he let her go, she would fall to her death. It was difficult to breathe, but she managed to get a clear look of his face: he was a boy of at least 16-years-old, with blond hair and his sinister blue eyes, which looked to be starring right into her soul. Her vision was getting blurry and she was sure she was going to die when a voice, probably Skuldugger's, called out her name. The boy looked at him, then at Valkyrie again, as if thinking which one to kill first. For some reason, Skulduggery seemed more attractive.

He tossed her in the river like a child would toss a Frisbee. The impact had been so sudden and the water was so cold that she didn't have time to do anything. The water was a little murky, but it was possible to see a ray of blue energy coming out of the boy's hand, aiming right for Skulduggery.

* * *

**What's up? Sorry, I know it took DECADES for me to upload this, it's just that my computer broke down, I had other fics to write and A LOT of stuff to do. But don't worry, I'll try to upload the next chapters as soon as possible :)**

**Oh, by the way, I know ''Kingdom of The Wicked'' just came out in Australia, but since I don't have it, this fic is happening 10 months after the events of ''Death Bringer'', for those who are confused. It's not a different version of KOTW(I've seen some spoilers, and trust me, the book is TOTALLY DIFFERENT from what I plan to write here), okay? It has one or two elements of the book, but it's very different.**


	3. Pink Capped Sheep

Valkyrie was an excellent swimmer. Always had been. But with gravity pushing her down and the water getting inside her lungs, she was sinking faster than a rock. She was also feeling a lot of pain from where the boy had hit her, so it was difficult do anything than drown.

_The lessons. Remember the lessons. You spend 3 hours on swimming on that cold lake just to learn that move, remember? You wanted to use it to scare Skulduggery._

She _did_ remember. Suddenly, all the hours she spend practicing water magic came back to her, and the pain faded away. She began to move her finger in a circle and soon, her whole body. The water also began to move, forming a hurricane. The faster she twirled, the faster the water did too. Finally, she rose out of the water. The blond boy turned to look at the giant water hurricane rising out of the river, and smiled at the girl standing in the middle of it. She looked angry.

-HEY, FREAK! – She yelled – WHAT'S THE MATTER? DON'T YOU KNOW IT'S WRONG TO HIT A GIRL?

-And why is that? - He responded, throwing Skulduggery aside and focusing on her.

-Because she might hit you back.

When they clashed, an explosion of water occurred. Fortunately, the boy did not know how to walk on water, so the second he landed, Valkyrie created a small storm. It was getting difficult for _her _to control the giant waves and stop the boy from killing her, but it became easier when Skulduggery arrived. He helped with the storm, but the boy managed to escape and on the air again, aiming something blue at her. Skulduggery managed to grab her before the lightning hit the water and she electrocuted.

-Iron Man?-he asked, still holding her.

-Yes. And also, that name sucks.

He threw her right in the boy's direction. At the last second, Valkyrie summoned two flames that propelled her. The boy turned to face her, but he didn't move. Skulduggery was coming from the other side. It looked like they were going to hit the boy at the same time, but, when there were a few meters left, they turned, and all the fire erupting from their hands went straight for the boy, creating a giant flamethrower. It also made Skulduggery and her crash like a spaceship. Skulduggery managed to push the air and make a softer landing, but Valkyrie was so focused on getting the move right that she only remembered when her body felt the stone floor. She didn't break any bones, but her right arm was scraped pretty bad. The pain made her vision blurry, but she managed to get up and walk to where the boy was. There were no apparent injuries on him, but he was unconscious. A few seconds later, Skulduggery came running from the back of some warehouse, but stopped once he noticed Valkyrie was fine.

-I can't believe that actually worked.-she said.

-The best moves are the ones the most ridiculous names.

-You've been watching too many kung-fu movies.

-And I will watch more, as soon as we get this boy back to the Sanctuary.

He picked the boy up and they walked back to the Bentley. Valkyrie looked at the hole on her coat: there was still a little smoke coming out of it.

-Ghastly is going to kill me.

* * *

-That scary friend of yours is going to kill you, you know that?

-Yes, I…OUCH…know that.

-It's a very pretty coat. Can I keep it?

-No, I can still use it…I think.

-I'm sure you can. I had this beautiful pair of pants once, but a friend of mine accidentally tore it from the knee to my foot. I liked it a lot, so I still wore it.

-Do you still…OUCH…have it?

-No. I sold it to a homeless guy. He gave a small pile of pink paper in return, and I used then to make hats. I could give you one, I'm sure it would look beautiful.

-Thanks. I'm sure it looks…OUCH…beautiful on you, too.

-It does. Now, just a little more…and done!

Clarabelle finished wrapping the piece of cloth on Valkyrie's arm. They were the only person on the Sanctuary Medical Bay (Ghastly had requested that, unless Valkyrie had a spear on her stomach, Clarabelle was supposed to be the one attending her). The blond boy had been delivered to Nye, and Valkyrie was secretly glad that he was unconscious. Skulduggery was in Ravel's office, discussing something with the Elders. Ghastly was furious when he had found out Ravel had no filed him on the situation, but Skulduggery quickly calmed him down.

Valkyrie forced herself to open her eyes. The fight with the boy had left her very tired, and the lack of sleep wasn't helping.

-Hey, Clarabelle, do have anything for nightmares?

-Nightmares? I don't think the doctor has any medicine for that, but do you want to what helps?

-What?

-Counting sheep.

-But…you need to be awake to count sheep.

-Not necessarily. They say that if you fall asleep thinking about something, you'll dream about it. A dream with thousands of sheep is better than a nightmare, right?

-I guess so…

-Your sheep can have a pink cap. Mine have blue fur, you know, because of my hair.

-And why would mine have a pink cap?

-Because of this.

She picked up a small, paper hat and placed it on Valkyrie's head.

-See? Told you it would look beautiful.

She even made Valkyrie look in a mirror. The hat really _did_ look nice on her. She was just about to wander what a sheep in a pink hat would look like when Tipstaff entered the room. First, he looked at Clarabelle's blue hair and Valkyrie's pink hat before speaking.

-Excuse me, Miss Cain, but you a visitor.

-A visitor?

-Yes. An agent from the British Sanctuary, I believe.

A tall man with blond hair and pale-green eyes entered the room. He was completely dressed in black, but had a friendly smile. He was going to speak, but stopped when he noticed Clarabelle.

-Mister Dreadnought,-said Tipstaff- Miss Cain is here, like you requested…

-Oh, of course.

He walked over to Valkyrie and kissed her hand. She got a good look on his face and noticed that he looked pretty familiar.

-It's very good to meet you, Valkyrie. I've heard so much about you that it seems like I already know you!

-Thanks…I guess?

-Sorry if seem a little creepy, I'm just glad to have find you. The name's Dreadnought. Logan Dreadnought.

-It's nice to meet you, too, Mister Dreadnought. Have we ever seen each other before? It's just that you look familiar…

His smiled widened.

-You've never met me, but you've met my other half.

-Your other half?

-That's right. You're a detective. Look harder and you'll see.

She did as he asked. Slowly, the resemblance came. The hair, the eyes, his way of speaking…

-You're Tanith's _brother_…

He smiled grew even bigger and he gave her a hug. Tanith had never talked much about her brother, and Valkyrie had never asked. It had been a year since the last time Valkyrie had seen her friend, so the fact that her brother was there had to mean something. He spend about 2 minutes hugging her, but then he let go.

-You know, from the way Tanith talked about you, it feels like you're our adoptive sister.

Valkyrie didn't know what to say, so she remained quiet.

-Is Skulduggery here? He probably is. I haven't seen him in a century. Come on; let's go talk to the old goat.

He took her hand and they left the Medical Bay together, but he stopped briefly to wink at Clarabelle. As they walked, Valkyrie focused her gaze on him; he and his sister looked so alike it was almost like seeing Tanith again. He noticed she was looking.

-I thought my sister was the Beauty Queen.

-Sorry, it's just…

-Don't worry, I know.

They walked a little more, and Valkyrie decided it was time to end the awkward silence.

-So, why are you here?

-Well, I've head you guys were in trouble, and since the British Sanctuary needs someone to do the dirty work, they send me.

-We're not ''in trouble''!

-Yes, you are. The other Sanctuaries are watching you guys like a hungry eagle.

-And you aren't?

-We're not so hungry. Besides, I like Ireland. You have a lot of green in here, and I like green. It matches my eyes.

Valkyrie laughed. She definitely _liked_ him.

-You know, you're pretty famous around the Globe.

-I am?

-Of course. The Last of the Ancients, the God-Killer and all the weird titles you can think of. You're even more famous than Skullduggery. He's a living skeleton, so I guess you can consider yourself a legend.

-A legend…I like that.

-You should, it's a pretty word. Say, about your friend back there…

-Clarabelle. Her name's Clarabelle.

-Thank…I mean, I just wanted to know if she was the one who gave you that hat.

-It was.

-Oh, awesome. It looks pretty on you. She has a great sense of style.

-I don't know her number.

-I would never ask for her number! But, since you suggested it, tell me if you find out. We could discuss accessories.

-I'm sure you could. You always had a weird sense of fashion, Logan.

Skulduggery was standing in front of them, looking directly at Logan. After a few minutes, they shook hands.

-Why are you here?

-Oh, know you. Sanctuary business and stuff. Are Ghastly and Ravel here?

-No.

-Oh, that's a shame. I really wanted to talk to them.

-They are very busy.

-I'm sure they are. Do you have any idea about when I will be able to talk to them?

-No. And if you excuse me, Valkyrie and I have work to do.

He took Valkyrie by the hand and quickly walked away. Valkyrie barely had time to say goodbye, but she heard him say:

-I'm sure we'll see each other again, Valkyrie. It was very, very good to meet you.

Skulduggery dragged her away for a long time before she managed to let go. Even so, he did not stop walking.

-What was THAT all about?!

-You know who that is, right?

-Yeah. Tanith's brother. Why the hell are you so scared?

-I'm not scared; it's just that…he's her brother, Valkyrie.

-I know that.

-It's been a year since we promised we would find Tanith. So far, our efforts were worth nothing. Why do you think he wants to see Ravel and Ghastly so bad? He's angry at them. He wants to find Tanith by himself.

-Well, if he's here because of that, I'm the one he should be angry at. It was me the Remnants dragged to MacGillycuddy's Reek; Tanith never would have gone there if it wasn't for me.

-Valkyrie…

-Shut up. You know it's true. Did Nye find anything about that boy?

-…

-Skulduggery, focus.

-…apparently, that boy had his unusual flow of magic.

-What do you mean?

-He's just like Melancholia. He has a load of magic stored in his body, but when it runs out, its lights out. It wasn't our attack that weakened him, it was himself.

-The battery ran out.

-Exactly. We also did some research and found out that boy was one of the missing teenagers. He's still asleep, so there's nothing we can ask him.

-Right. What did the Elders say?

-Nothing. I told them what happened, they listened. We should be on the lookout for any more explosions or kidnappings, but for now, things are fine. You should go home, you look tired.

-I'm not tired!

-Yes, you are. You have dark circles under your eyes. Sleep problems?

-Yes-she lied- But I'm still not going.

-Yes, you are. I'll call if anything happens. Now, if you'll excuse me, I will try to keep Logan away from Ghastly.

He left, and a few minutes later, so did Valkyrie. She took a bus back to Gordon's manor and immediately went to sleep. She knew the nightmare would come, so she put the pink hat next her pillow and began to count.

_One_

_Two_

_Three…_

* * *

**I think this chapter has too much talking. I wanted to write more, but it was 5 AM and I had books to read, so...no. What do you think of Tanith's brother? I like him a lot :) I don't know how I got the idea of shipping him with Clarabelle, but it's one of the best I've ever had :)**

**Also, PINK-CAPPED SHEEP. BEST THING EVER. **

**Let's see, what else...oh, sorry it takes me so long to upload this. I'll stop, I promise! It's just that I have to take care of my puppy and school and books and laziness! I can't give you a hint about what happens next chapter, but it's coming soon! **

**PS: If you came from Tumblr: Hi :)**


	4. A Tale of Two Girls and The Fridge King

Clara Wolf hated planes. And spiders. And feeling cold. And nightmares. So far, she had already encountered three of those things.

-Are you alright? –Asked Rodrigo Garralonga- You seen pale.

-I'm fine. I'm just a little sick.

-You better get some color when we get to Ireland. The Sanctuary there is pretty strict compared to us.

-That doesn't make any sense. If they are so strict and powerful, why would they need the help of a minor Sanctuary? That only proves that they're in the mud.

He smiled. At first, Clara always looked like a stupid, brainless kid, but she was actually the exact opposite.

-Why don't you try to sleep a little?

-I can't. I'm excited about meeting _them_.

-Again with this, Clara?

-It's just…they are so _FREAKING AWESOME! _ I mean, at least they _sound_ awesome, but every legend has a speck of truth, right? Besides, you've met him once, so you know what he's like.

-It was a long time ago.

-Can you tell me about it?

-No. You need to prepare for when we get to Dublin. In fact, you need to do that _right now_.

-You're such a fun-killer. Well, I hope this trip will be worth it. If we don't get to see him, at least I want a leprechaun.

She left for the other side of the plane and Rodrigo resumed his reading. They were on a 14-hours flight from São Paulo to Dublin, on a Sanctuary appointed mission. He had no idea what had happened to the Irish Ambassador, but the fact that Erskine Ravel needed him had to meant trouble. Even Clara got it, but then, that was her job. To notice things others ignored.

For the tenth time since they left, he picked up her file. He was sure she was the right person for the job, but it safer to check.

_NAME: Clara Wolf_

_BIRTH: August 7, 1998_

_CURRENT AGE: 14 years old_

_MAGICAL DISCIPLINE: Elemental_

_PHISYCAL DESCRIPTION: Short for age, dark-brown hair, brown eyes, scar on right foot._

_JOB: Apprentice-Ambassador at the Brazilian Sanctuary._

_NOTES: Extremely intelligent, highly skilled in water magic, fluent in 5 languages, talent for persuasion and deception, lacks fighting ability, has great economical resources, comes from a respect magical family._

By ''respect magical family'', he was sure they meant ''highly problematical mother and brother, but father is very rich and has a high position on the Sanctuary''. Clara was a very talented girl, but her family was the definition of stress. If it had not been for her father, her family would have been in the mud. She was smart and brave, and just the right person to replace him. He only hoped she would still be alive to do that when the time came.

_We're about to go to a land of chaos, my dear girl. You are strong, but that will not stop your head from falling from your shoulders. The World is falling apart, and we're the ones who will have to hold it if it does._

* * *

She had a name, once.

They only called her ''thing''. No name, no ''boy'' or ''girl'', nothing. They said it was for the best, that it was all to make her stronger when the time came, but she didn't like it. There were many ''things'' there, and not one of them with capital letters. They were nothing.

The cell she was in was comfortable, in a way. She had a bed, a bathroom, and she could talk to the other things if she wanted. They called her the old thing, as she had been there the longest. The other things were always talking about something or another, but not her. She had nothing to talk about, as she had no memory. There were flashes, sometimes. A boy and a girl laughing while playing video-games, lots and lots of books about the stars, a group of 6 or 7 teenagers running and laughing.

Then it was over.

Her mind was slipping away slowly. She wasn't going insane, but there was a growing hole in her head.

_If I do not have memories or a name, then what am I?_

She always tried _so hard_ to remember her name. She remembered thousands of names, all the ones she'd heard while she was alive, but none belonged to her. She didn't even remember the first letter of it.

-Come here, thing.

She turned around: There was a man standing at the entrance to the cell. He was the one who took people.

-Is it time? –she asked as he helped her up. –

-Yes. Now, close your eyes…

She did as he asked. They were forbidden to exit their cells without a supervisor, and still they could not know where they were going. The man guided her to somewhere far away from the cells, as the voices of the things faded away. They walked for a long time until; finally, they arrived on a room so cold it made her shiver.

She opened her eyes: it was very dark, except for some lights illuminating what might have been a bed with straps. A figure on the other side of the room was cleaning something, probably medical instruments. The man made her lie on the bed and began to mess with the scraps. Suddenly, thing felt very scared.

-What's going on? What are you going to do with me?

-Shhhhhh, - said a female voice – don't worry. Nothing bad is going to happen to you, my dear. You will feel better after this, I promise.

-I…will?

-Yes, you will. Now, close your eyes…and rest...

-Yes …my Lady…

She fell asleep and Lady turned to the man:

-Lock the door. Don't let anyone come here, no matter how much noise she makes, understood?

-Yes, my Lady.

-Good. Now go.

He left, and a few minutes later, the operation began. The girl screamed two or three times, and they had been loud enough to make a child cry, but she wasn't in pain. When the first lock broke, _that's _when she screamed the loudest. Lady smiled when she heard the _CRACK _of the falling lock and with every movement the girl made, the smiled grew bigger. It lasted about one and a half hour.

When it was over, Lady made her way to the girl. The doctor was standing next to her. The girl wasn't moving or breathing at all.

-Are you sure you did not kill her?

The doctor nodded. A few seconds later, the girl began to move. First her fingers, then her feet, and finally, her head. Her eyes opened, both a startling blue, and she got up. Lady helped her comb her hair and put the black jacket, and of course, the angel necklace.

-I'm alive.

-You are, dear.

-I feel…different.

-You _are_ different.

-I'm ready.

-Actually, you still need a name. _Des suggestions?_

The girl thought for a while, but then opened a wicked smile. Of the kind that made Lady happy.

-Kitana. I am Kitana. Anything else is useless.

* * *

-I WANT YOU'RE LOVE AND I WANT YOUR REVENGE, YOU AND ME COULD WRITE A BAD ROMAAAAAAAAAAAAAANCE! I WANT YOUR LOVE AND ALL YOUR LOVER'S REVENGE, YOU AND ME COULD WRITE A BAD ROMAAAAAAANCE!

Scapegrace didn't know what was worse: to be stuck on a freezer 24 hours straight, or having to listen to Thrasher sing that song all day.

-CAN'T YOU AT LEAST SING SOMETHING OTHER THAN LADY GAGA?

-J'VEUX TON AMOUR, ET JE VEUX TON REVANCHE! J' VEUX TON AMOUR, I DON'T WANNA BE FRIEEEEENDS!

-Good God, I HAVEN'T EVEN KILLED ANYONE! ARE YOU PUNISHING ME FOR MY SINS OR SOMETHING? PUNISH HIM! DOING THAT IS AGAINST PRETTY MUCH EVERY LAW EVER CREATED ON THE UNIVERSE!

-Did you say something, Master? Did you enjoy my singing?

-NO, I DID NOT.

-Oh…I see…

-Tell me again why are you doing that?

-You need to keep your spirits up, Master! Ever since you've been in that freezer, your mood has gotten worse and worse.

-I'm a head, Thrasher. A _head. _I used to be the Killer Supreme, the Zombie King! But now, I'm just the King of the Fridge…

-Don't think like that, master! A head can to lots of things!

-Like what?

-Like, huuuum…sing! And make inspirational speeches!

-When will I get to make a speech, Thrasher?

-You could do one right now, Master. Think about it while I drive.

Thrasher resumed driving the Penguinmobile and Scapegrace tried to think of a speech. It was very boring being a head, so all he did was think the whole day. People always said that thinking made you smart, so Scapegrace was sure he was a genius by now. Surely he could think of a speech.

He imagined himself entering a crowded room. He was wearing a suit and everyone cheered and clapped when he climbed on the stage. Teenage girls screamed his name and threw their clothes and jewels at him. Finally, they calmed down and he began:

_-Ladies and Gentleman, thank you all for gathering here today! It is my pleasure to be here, and how could I not come, with all these beauties at the crowd?_

The girls screamed even louder and the women did too. They launched themselves at him, and his vision was temporarily blocked when a bra landed on his face. Security guards with guns and baseball bats came running to his rescue and the crowd calmed down again.

_-Thank you, ladies! I'm sure you're all really beautiful and talented, except for you at 30-K. You look like a platypus. Now, as I was saying, everyone can do anything. We're just too lazy to go out there and do stuff, but you'd be surprised about how much you can do if you get your butt out of the chair._

Everyone clapped again, and Scapegrace walked to the edge of the stage to bow. He bended his back, lowered his head…

And felt the pain when it hit the floor. It went rolling went Thrasher turned the Penguinmobile which such speed that Scapegrace barely had time to scream. It turned again and again, and each time, Scapegrace hit something. When it finally stopped, he was so dizzy he was having difficulty differentiating a Lady Gaga song from normal speech. He was still on the third verse of ''Paparazzi'' when Thrasher came running from the front of the van.

-Master, are you alright?

-I'm fine. What happened?

-We have a little…obstacle on the road.

-What? What do you mean?

-It's…huuuum…

-Just pick me up and show me.

He did as Scapegrace commanded. The exited the van and he saw the damage this obstacle had caused. There were tire marks on the road and the van was a 3-fingers-distance of hitting a tree. As impossible as it sounded, Thrasher had made it pretty well.

-Now, where the heck is this obstacle…HEY!

There was a man standing in front of the van. He was dressed completely in black and, even though he was close, every time Scapegrace looked at his face, it seemed fuzzy, like when you have water in your eyes. Thrasher approached the man. He seemed not to mind Scapegrace's head.

-Hey, buddy! What's the big idea? Are you the one who jumped in front of our van?

He said nothing. Instead, he smiled.

-Are you Vaurien Scapegrace and Thrasher the Zombie?

-We might be. Who the hell are you?

-My name is of no importance to you. I am here to offer you a job.

-A job?

He nodded.

-What kind of job?

-You will find out when we get there.

-Sorry, but I'm not interested. Thrasher, let's get back to the van and…

The man picked Thrasher by the shoulders. Both the zombies got a clear look of his face. Poor Thrasher quickly gave away, but Scapegrace resisted a little longer. The last thing he saw before he passed out were the man's eyes, golden as the afternoon sky.

* * *

**Helloooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooo, my loyal readers :) What did you guys think of Clara? I think she's AWESOME! Planes, spiders and nightmares are scary stuff, she's from Brazil, which is a very, VERY cool country, and her birthday is on August 7, the most AWESOME day of the year. Really, Clara is so cool that it's impossible that she came from my head. Maybe she was inspired by someone. Someone very cool, awesome and all the good stuff you can think of times 5. I wonder who...**

**And yes, that is Kitana. As I said before, this fic is going to have some elements from KOTW, but my Kitana is different from Derek's Kitana(I haven't even read the book whet, so I don't know what she's like).**

**I really liked the whole deal with Kitana being called ''thing''. I don't know why, but the part where she describes it was my favorite to write :)**

**Also, one last thing: if you're Cal or Fem or Becky(right. No one on Tumblr reads my fic. A TUMBLR FAMOUS person even less), SCAPEGRACE AND THRASHER SINGING LADY GAGA OR THE FRIDGE KING. IF ANYONE GIFS OR MAKES A POST ABOUT THIS, IT WILL BE ONE MORE ITEM ON THE ''Why I love you'' LIST. No pressure. ~no, really, no pressure. I was kidding~**

**See you guys next chapter, where a not-so-old friend makes a visit and...I don't know, whatever else I feel like writing at the time :)**


	5. The Wretched Spider

The room was clean, comfortable and always lit up and warm. Valkyrie had made sure of that.

She lay on the bed, with the covers on. She seemed so quiet and peaceful, nothing like the angry, lost girl she had been 10 months ago. Valkyrie felt sorry for her.

The room was never locked, but Valkyrie didn't go in. She always looked through the glass window. She could her Clarabelle singing upstairs and also the noise of the heather. It might have sounded quite insensible if she told people she went to that place to think, so when she did, she avoided all contact. Nobody ever went there, not even Nye. Valkyrie liked to look at the sleeping necromancer. It was beautiful and frightening at the same time: it was good to see Melancholia happy, but it also reminded her that _she _could have been the one on that bed.

_If the necromancers decided that I was the Death Bringer, it would have been me lying there, not Melancholia. If I lose control of Darquesse or if people find out who I am, I'm ending up there as well._

The nightmares had frightened her, so she had decided to ''visit her friend''. Not even Skulduggery knew about it.

_It's kind of nice, not having Skulduggery following me 24 hours a day._

-A coin for your thoughts.

Valkyrie turned around. Madame Mist was walking towards her. She wasn't wearing her Elder robes; instead, it was a beautiful black dress that covered all of her body. Her gloves were made of a softer fabric, but it was still impossible to see anything.

-It's ''a penny for you thoughts'', not ''a coin''.

-Same thing, different name. Very much like all of us.

She stopped next to Valkyrie, but didn't even look at her. Her eyes were fixed on Melancholia.

-Poor child.

-She's not a child.

-Not? Don't you mean ''wasn't''?

-Stop talking about her like she's dead. She's still here, you know. Just…asleep.

Mist looked at Valkyrie, but it was impossible to know what she was thinking.

-I apologize. You seem to be quite fond of this girl, although, it's understandable. You and her are very similar. The only difference is the person that took advantage of you.

-What do you mean?

-If the necromancers had gotten to you first, you would have been their Death Bringer. You would have followed _them_, just like you do with Skulduggery. Craven was a fool, he had no idea how to play this game. Skulduggery, on the other hand, is quite skilled at it.

-So, you're saying Skulduggery is taking advantage of me.

-That is for you to decide.

They remained in silence for a few seconds, until Valkyrie spoke again.

-How did you know I was here?

-I am a wretched spider, my dear. It is my job to lie in the shadows, to observe people.

-In other words, you have spies and they see me come here.

-You _do_ take the mystery out of everything.

Valkyrie smiled. She didn't know why, but she was enjoying this conversation.

-I'm a detective. It's what I do.

-A detective that spends most of her time hitting people. Do you ever get to do any investigating _at all?_

-You know, I never thought of it that way. Maybe we should give it another name?

-Perhaps we should. In a world like ours, you need to be good with names. In the end, they are the things that end up saving your life.

-What?

-Your name defines who you are; it defines if people like you or hate you. I doubt that, if Skulduggery started walking calling himself ''Lord Vile'', people would be pleased.

Valkyrie jumped and backed away from Mist. She turned to the door, ready to run away, when Mist spoke:

-Don't worry, child. I won't tell.

-Liar. You're lying, I know it. Where's Skulduggery? What did you do to him?

-There is _nothing_ I can do. If I, a Child of the Spider, started walking around, yelling that Skulduggery Pleasant is one of the most dangerous sorcerers in history and a psychopathic killer, you think people would believe me?

-But…

-People think Lord Vile is dead, and it is better if he _stays_ that way. Skulduggery should have destroyed that armor when he had the chance, but he was too weak to do it. The Death Bringer is gone; there is no place for Lord Vile in our world anymore.

-How did you…?

-It wasn't difficult. I had my suspicious, but why would Lord Vile, a man everyone thought was dead, would rise from the ashes just when Valkyrie Cain was in trouble? Why would he appear at the Requiem Ball, just when Melancholia was about to kill you?

-If you tell anyone…

-I won't. The three of us are the only people who know, and it's going to stay that way.

Valkyrie didn't know what to do. She just froze, and did not move until Tipstaff entered the room to tell Mist that her presence was required. Before she left, she looked at Valkyrie.

-Well, it appears I have work to do. It was very nice talking to you, Valkyrie.

She left, but Valkyrie continued frozen. She looked at Melancholia, reminded herself that it could have been her in that bed, and ran out of the Sanctuary as fast as she could.

* * *

They all sat in a round table, so they could look at each other's faces during the meeting. Ghastly didn't know why, Mist was always wearing that veil, Ravel did not any facial expression that wasn't concern these days, and Ghastly was always too busy thinking about Tanith to care.

_I am a terrible politician. I'm a tailor, for God's sake! I can mend clothes, not countries!_

His thoughts were interrupted when Nye entered the room. No one knew how to refer to him. Some called him ''it'', some called him ''him'' and some just said ''The Doctor''. Those who were lucky enough never got to talk about him at all. It was one of Ravel's biggest fears: that Nye would cause trouble on the Sanctuary, but so far nothing had happened. Ghastly knew there was something wrong with this, but he preferred not to think about it.

The Doctor began. He explained about the medical discoveries on the boy: the unusual flux of magic and such, but there was one other thing. The boy's nervous system had been completely destroyed. No just his brain, but the important parts of it, like the place where memories were stored and movement control.

-So you're saying he lost the ability to think? – Ravel asked- How is that possible?

-He did lose the ability to think, he forgot it. There was a symbol on his brain that, when activated, destroyed all of his memories. He forgot how to walk, talk and breathe. His body forgot how to work. His personality was completely erased.

-An empty shell, practically dead. He is of no use to us anymore – said Mist - We should dispose of him immediately.

-Dispose? How can you be so cold?! This is a human being we're talking about!

-A human, Elder Bespoke? He can't think and he can't breathe. He will die anyway; we should just put him out of his misery.

-She's right, Ghastly. I don't like this, but it's the only choice we have.

-Do you ever notice that her choices are _always _the only ones we have?

-What's this? Are you jealous? I honestly thought better of you, Elder Bespoke. You say I am ruthless in my duties as an Elder, but what have _you _done? You focus all of your energies of finding Miss Low, but so far, you have accomplished nothing. We're facing the threat of another War. If Ireland falls, the magic world will go with it. You accepted the robes and duties of an Elder. If you want to play sick love-bird, then I suggest you leave.

The temperature of the room dropped suddenly. Mist was calm as a statue and Nye displayed a wicked smile. It took several seconds for Ravel to remember how to speak.

-Doctor, do you have any idea what could cause any of these…alterations?

-There are a lot of things that could cause it. Impeccable symbol work, high knowledge of the flow of magic, which something not even I possess completely, and of course, a plan.

-A plan?

-Messing with one's magic can be dangerous, Grand Mage. This boy had not yet chosen a Taken Name, he was pure mortal. It would have been very easy to control him, once his magic was set.

-Which means that, whoever is doing this needed this boy for something, and if you need someone to do something for you…

-…then you must have a plan.

Ravel turned to Ghastly and Mist, his voice was dead serious:

-Ghastly, get Skulduggery here and inform him about all this. Mist, gather the Sensitives and make sure they are doing a good job on keeping all this outside of the mortal's hands.

-What about you, Grand Mage?

For the first time in days, Erskine Ravel smiled.

-Me? Well, I guess you could say I have to welcome a few friends from the jungle…

* * *

Nobody knew exactly why, if you went to a certain street in Dublin, spoke 5 certain words and pressed 5 certain buttons, a door would open. Nobody knew exactly why the apartment inside of it was covered in symbols, ancient books and images of strange creatures. Nobody knew exactly why the woman who lived there seemed always so sad and lonely.

By age 5, China Sorrows had known the history of the Faceless Ones better then she knew how to count. Even before she knew how to read, the images on the books were enough to create stories in her head. By age 10, she had read all of them and knew all the members of the Church by name and magical discipline. By age 13, she was already a devout follower and a junior member in the Church. By age 15, she had selected her Taken Name and was apprenticed to the leader of the Church. By age 251, she had abandoned all that to join the ''Atheists''. It was only fitting that, 122 years later, she decided to return to all that knowledge, but for a very different reason.

Eliza Scorn was not a religious woman; she did not care about The Faceless Ones at all. She wasn't like China, who had been born into that world. What attracted Scorn to the religion so much was a simple motive: arrogance. According to their followers, if The Faceless Ones returned to Earth, they would kill anyone that did not worship them. If they did that, Scorn would get the chance to say ''I told you so'' to the whole world. She only cared about the prospect of proving that she was better than anyone else, that her choices were always the better ones. No matter what she did, she always left a trail, something for people to remember her by. She was cold and arrogant, and never cared for the future or the past. The future was nothing she could not handle, and the past was just a path of dead plants she had stepped over, they were of no danger to her.

And it would be that line of thought that was going to kill her. China would make sure of that.

She had been following Scorn's and all the members of the Church's movements ever since she had settled in that apartment. It was an old hideout she liked to use during her fanatic years, so it was full of stuff on The Faceless Ones. China had spent the last 10 months studying it all She had memorized list of hideouts, members, passwords and meetings. She had lured ex-members into traps and made them talk. She had become a fanatic again.

_You fool. Don't you realize what you are doing? Eliza will never bring the Dark Gods back; she needs an Isthmus Anchor for that. Why don't you stop being so stubborn and admit you are doing this for revenge?_

It was, partially, for that. Scorn had destroyed everything Chine held dear: her library, her home and most importantly, her friends. She was glad that Skulduggery did not have a face, or we would not be able to bear the look it would have shown that day.

_My brother is gone, too. I have nothing left._

She looked at the pile of books and manuscripts that flooded the apartment.

_Well, except for this. I always wished to be surrounded by books and nothing else. It looks my wish has been granted._

She resumed her reading. It was one of the few books she had managed to save from her library, and although it was considered a ''children's book'', it was one of her favorites. It was about a young servant boy named Henry Grim was accepted into the ''Knightley Academy'', a prestigious school for knights. After arriving in the academy, Henry befriends two ''outsider'' boys and the headmaster's daughter, a young ''lady'' who aspired to be a knight, even though the rules of society of the time absolutely forbade it. Henry faced many challenges on the school that went to bullying by his colleagues, an assassination attempt from a teacher and the discovery that a rival school was training its students to become soldiers, in order to invade Henry's country. Valkyrie had borrowed it last year, and had absolutely fallen in love with it.

_When all of this is over, if I'm still alive, I will buy book 2 of this thing. If I'm going to die, at least I knew to know if Henry and Francesca finally get together._

Her alarm clock began to beep. It was already 2 AM. China took her bag and left the apartment. Just to be sure, she brought a pistol in case anything went wrong. Every time she left the apartment, she had the feeling that even the shadows were following her.

_Is this how Skulduggery felt when he came back? Is this how he was like when he was searching for Serpine? Spying his every move, waiting for him to slip up. And always so alone. Valkyrie has no idea how much of a miracle she really is._

Dublin was quiet this time of the day. Since the kidnappings had started, people were locking their doors to pretty much anyone at any hour. It wasn't very difficult to her; the hard part was getting in. It took about ten minutes of symbol work and a shot on the padlock for the door to open. She was sitting inside, drinking tea.

-Hello, China.

-Did you know I would come?

-I suspected. This is the most dangerous thing about being a Sensitive, you know? You're always so sure you know everything that you forget to look on the shadows, were the wretched spiders and wicked rats hide.

-I never suspected you were so philosophical, Aunt Cassandra.

-It's been 3 centuries, and you still call me your aunt. I must be very special to you.

-You are, which why you will be quiet and do as I say so I don't have to kill you.

China took out her pistol and pointed right to Cassandra's head. Instead of shock and dismay, she only smiled and followed China out of the house. Her ''niece'' had always had no trouble in getting what she wanted, and one did not need to be a Sensitive to know that.

* * *

**I'm writing this really fast cause I'm 8 minutes away from getting ready to school, so this'll be brief...kind of.**

**Is it just me, or it seems like that are people actually LIKING this fic...The SP fandom is a small fandom , so any reviews or recognition is GOLDEN! Thanks everyone :)**

**The book China is reading is called ''Knightley Academy'', by Violet Haberdasher. READ IT. IT'S LIKE JASHDUSAIHDIASHDUISAHDUIAHSD ISAHDUIAHSDIHSAIUDHBASKJDBAK BSDUASBDUASKDFSAKFBKASBDUIAS BDUSABDKASBDUSADBSAUBDAKSDBS UADBAUSDB FLAWLESS BOOK IS FUCKING FLAWLESS!**

**Before you guys start talking, I DON'T ship Val/Mel. I just think they're really alike, and Valkyrie knows that, so she feels pity for her. I really liked Melancholia in the short minutes in which she wasn't an idiot. But, even if she's not anymore, there's still the risk that her powers blow her up and everyone near it, so it's really sad :(**

**One more thing: Is Mist an enemy or a friend? I can tell that, no matter what she does is good or bad, she's still one heck of a wretched spider...**


	6. Dream Flowers

Bespoke's Tailors was number 3 in Valkyrie and Skulduggery's ''come here in case of The End of the World'' list. Gordon's house was number 1 and Skulduggery's house was number 2, but since the first one was too far and the second one was too obvious, it was there that Valkyrie ran to. Ever since Ghastly had become an Elder, the shop was closed, but never locked. Valkyrie changed this the minute she got there; she locked the door, called Skulduggery and told him to stay away from the Sanctuary and any Child of the Spider. The Bentley arrived about 40 minutes later, and Valkyrie opened the door.

-What happened? – asked Skulduggery as he entered the shop.

-It's Mist. She knows about Vile.

-Oh…

-''Oh''? What do you mean ''oh''? Aren't you worried?!

-Of course I'm worried…kind of. What else did she tell you?

-She told me she wouldn't tell anyone, that she has no way to prove it and no one would believe her, and also to destroy the armor. Do you believe her?

-Strangely as it sounds, I do. What about you? Did she say anything about Darquesse?

-No, but if she found out about Vile, she'll end up finding out about her. What do we do?!

Skulduggery sat on the couch. He was silent for a long time, and Valkyrie realized that she was scared.

-Say something, Skulduggery! What do we do if she finds out?!

-We do nothing.

-…what?

-We don't do anything. We can't simply march on the Sanctuary and _ask_ her, and I think that, if she knew that you were the witch that's going to kill the world, you wouldn't be sitting here right now. She would have taken some measures. The best thing to do is leave her alone; we have other things to focus on, like the kidnappings.

-The kidnappings…right. Did you find anything else?

-Nothing new, but that boy died a few hours ago.

-What?! How?! It wasn't us, was it…?

-No. Someone set a symbol on his brain that killed him. They were afraid he would talk.

-So, our only lead is gone. What do we do now?

-We find more. We're detectives, it's what we do.

-Actually, we spend more time hitting people than solving crimes. It's not investigating, it's something else.

-Like what? – Skulduggery asked as they got out of the shop and into the Bentley.

-I don't know, but we need to give it a new name. Names are important, you know.

She said the last part so low that not even Skulduggery listened. He began to talk about his clever plan to hide Ghastly and Ravel from Logan, and he actually seemed to be happy, so Valkyrie let him talk. Ever since she had found about Vile, she never knew if Skulduggery was happy or just faking it for her sake. Skulduggery blabbed on and on, but she didn't listen. Eventually, she fell asleep, but did so while smiling.

_Skulduggery's going to be so angry when he notices._

_Indeed, I believe he will._

Valkyrie opened her eyes; she wasn't at the Bentley anymore.

_Where am I? That voice just now…it wasn't Darquesse._

She examined her surroundings: it wasn't the dark temple from her nightmares, but there was still a strange feeling about it. It seemed like the inner courtyard of a castle, like the ones in the pictures in history books. There was an exit leading to inside the castle and another one leading to what seemed to be a hill, but both paths were blocked by darkness. She heard and felt rain falling, but she wasn't wet.

_A dream, this is a dream. It has to be._

_It is. Don't worry, Darquesse. Nothing bad ever happens in our dreams. They never show the future, only what we __**fear **__will happen in the future._

_That's a lie, and don't call me Darquesse, whoever you are._

_I'm sorry; do you prefer to be called by another name? Valkyrie, maybe?_

_Valkyrie __**is **__my name. Not Darquesse._

_You certainly don't act like it._

_What?_

_You fear becoming Darquesse so much that you talk about her like she's someone else. Don't do it, you're just giving her an identity, a reason to __**be**__. Embrace her power. Without it, Darquesse is nothing; her name will fade away with the wind…_

_But, if I embrace her power, won't I become her?_

_You don't understand. Darquesse __**belongs**__ to you. She __**is**__ you, not the contrary. Take away her name, take away her everything…_

Valkyrie was about to ask more, when she realized that the courtyard was flooded. She was drowning and couldn't swim up. Her lungs did not ache, but she could feel the water pulling her down, trapping her.

_I'm going to die. If you die during a dream, then you wake up, right…?_

But she wasn't dying. She was literally just floating in the middle of a giant puddle of water.

_Okay…how do I die?_

Suddenly, she heard a laugh. At first, it was hard to see, but soon the image of the ghost boy appeared before her. He had a big smiled and seemed prettier than ever. Valkyrie felt strangely attracted to him, but not in a romantic way. He reached to touch him, and even though he was a ghost, she felt _something._

_How do you know me?_

_I've always been with you._

_Then, how come I don't know your name?_

_You know my name, you just don't know me._

_That doesn't make any sense at all._

_Most things don't._

The water began to get more and more violent. Black spots appeared and the vision of the boy quickly began to fade away.

_Your friend is calling you. You have to go._

_Won't you come with me?_

He laughed.

_I'm a ghost. Even if I'm there, you won't see me, so what's the point?_

_So, that's all I have to know that you're there? Your word?_

_Oh, I wouldn't trust me if I were you. The dead always lie._

_Why?_

_Because, no matter how much they play the game, they never lose._

Valkyrie woke up to the sound of Skulduggery's voice telling her that they had arrived wherever it was that they needed to be. He did not ask when she began to cough and stopped to catch her breath.

* * *

They got out of the Bentley and entered a tall, glowing building. The inside of it was decorated with statues, fountains, Persian carpets, golden chandeliers and posters of old movies. Valkyrie could hear music and the sound of people laughing. She and Skulduggery sat on a red couch, and he never took his eyes of the bronze clock ticking quietly in the wall next to them.

-Skulduggery, is this a _casino?_

-If I tell you it is, will you be angry at me?

-Why would I be angry at you?

-Because you are no 18 yet, and it is illegal for under-eighteens to go to casinos.

-I'm sure that is also illegal for 12 years old to attack a horde of vampires, but I'm still sitting here, so I guess no one cares.

-Good point.

_Tick-Tock, tick-tock._

-I didn't…say anything while I was sleeping, did I?

-You didn't make a noise. I only noticed you were sleeping about half an hour later. It hurts, you know, when you're talking to a person and they fall asleep.

-They have the right to do that when the subject is boring. Besides, I was tired.

-You certainly were. It took me five minutes to wake you up, and then you almost puked in my car. What was the dream about?

-Nothing I want to talk about.

-It wasn't about a ''who eats the most hot-dogs contest'', was it?

-Ewwwww, no! Why would it be about that?!

-Because, when you woke up, you almost puked in my car.

-Don't mind him, _chéri_. He never knew how to talk to a woman.

A man in a dark coat had appeared behind Skulduggery. He had sea-green eyes and seemed to be about 30 years old. He wore an ace-shaped pin and he had, literally, cards coming out of his sleeves.

-Honestly, Skulduggery, you always had style, but this is **not** how you come to a party!

-We're not here to party, Kurt.

-First of all, it's not ''Kurt'' it's Monsieur Kurt H. Oswin. Second, if you are not here to gamble, then leave. Third, for God's sake, please tell me you're not making her wear that hat of yours!

-Fourth, I have 500 hundred American dollars on my pocket.

The man smiled and whistled. Two golden door that Valkyrie hadn't seen before opened and walked through them without saying a word. Skulduggery and Valkyrie followed, also in silence. The corridors were pretty much the same: red carpets with golden pictures, fancy paintings, perverted status and wooden doors leading to other rooms, but they only walked forward. The casino echoed with the sound of laughter, machines and jazz music. After what seemed an eternity they arrived on the last room: it was bigger than anything she had ever seen. A platform led to a round table in the middle of a garden. The right and left side of the platform were full of water and beautiful flowers floated on the surface. Silence was absolute and even Skulduggery seemed shocked by the vision of the garden.

When they arrived on the table, Kurt took something out of his pocket and put it on the table. Twelve cards all faced down.

-Sit – said Kurt – Skulduggery, you wait.

Valkyrie looked at Skulduggery, suddenly feeling nervous. He nodded and she did as Kurt asked. All twelve cards were in front of her, and Valkyrie felt a strange urge to touch them.

-What are you going to do? Are you a Sensitive?

-If that is what you wish to call me. In some places, I am called a Wiccan, a sorcerer, a creature of the Devil. My favorite is ''prophet'', it makes me sound like one of those cool, wise old mans from TV. And you, my girl, what do you call yourself? Your title, I mean.

-Well…I guess you could call me ''The Last of The Ancients''.

-Stylish, I like it. The last of the Last of The Ancients. An endangered species.

-I'm not an animal.

-Humans _are _animals. You are one; I am one, except with better taste in fashion. I mean, except for Skulduggery.

-Skulduggery, I think he just insulted you…?

Skulduggery wasn't moving. He was standing quietly next to the water and did not turn around when Valkyrie talked to him.

-Skulduggery? Hellooooooo? Are you listening to me? SKULDUGGERY!

-Don't bother. He can't hear you.

-What?

-The minute you sat on this table, all sounds coming from outside were shut down. He can't hear us, and we can't hear him. It's better if we start now, before he turns around and sees that we're having a peaceful conversation instead of working. Are you ready to begin?

-Begin what?

He sighed.

-Girl, you seen nice, but I suppose you did not come here just to give me money. I repeat: are you ready to begin?

-I guess so…Yes, yes I am.

-_Tres bien. _When's your birthday?

-My…birthday?

-Yes, your birthday. The day you first saw the great light of the world. The day you-

-I get it. It's August 28th.

-End of August…a Virgo, then.

-Right, but what does this have to do with-

Kurt picked up one of the card and gave it to her. It was still face down, and somehow, Valkyrie knew it was best not to turn it.

-You are an Elemental, I believe?

-Yes.

-Burn the card with a flame. I will tell you when you need to stop

Valkyrie did as he commanded. Summoning a flame was as easy as breathing for her, especially such a small one, but she began to feel…weird. Not weak, but a sensation of emptiness. Like when she was bleeding. She could feel the blood coming out of her body, but it did not bother her. She could move on, despite the emptiness.

-Stop.

The card wasn't burned. There were no ashes on it, it was completely intact.

-What the hell…?

-Turn it face up.

The card had the picture of a Lion, surrounded by a sun. There were words on it, but they were so small that Valkyrie had to squeeze her eyes to see:

_Leo(The Lion)_

_July 22-August 22_

_The protagonist. The chooser. The loyal hero. The selfish innocent._

_-_What's this? A horoscope, or some sort of tarot card?

-This card, my dear, is your future.

Valkyrie was about to ask what he meant when his hand moved to her mouth silencing her.

-Before you ask, allow me to explain: I am, as you said before, a Sensitive. Most of my kind prefers to use...dirty methods, like that ridiculous Steam Chamber, but not me. Oh, not me. I prefer more stylish ways. According to ancient legend, a person's sign can be influential on Elemental magic. This card allows the energy of the magical flame to flow from your soul to it, giving it…how can I say this...a ''taste of your soul''. Then, I use my powers to predict your future, which appears as the text in the card.

-But why do you need the whole ''soul'' thing?

-The future is simply a web made of people's decisions. If they change the way they think, a new web is formed. Usually, a Sensitive sees visions of many components of that web, but this method allows you to see only you, o the role you will play in a certain event. It is much clearer, but, as always, I cannot predict the entire future, just a part of it.

-And why the silence bubble?

-Messing with one's soul is a complicated process, even if it's a small part of it. For this way of divination to succeed, I need only two souls in the room: mine's, which I know well, and yours. Another one would ruin everything. A person's presence is indicated by the noise they make; no noise, and for you, they aren't there. Your energy is drawn to the card, and _voila!_

-So, there is, literally, a piece of my soul stuck on this card.

-Indeed.

-That's so…

-Amazing?

-Weird, but that too.

-That's what they all say. Now, call the old sack of bones so I can finally finish this.

Valkyrie barely felt anything when she left the silence bubble, but Skulduggery turned around when he heard the hear footsteps. He didn't even talk to her; he just left her standing there like a post. It was obvious he didn't like this place, but why?

Valkyrie began to look around the garden. At first, she had not realized how big it really was, but now it looked to be twice the size of Gordon's ball room. The pinks flowers on the surface of the water emanated a sweet smell, like a perfume, but natural. She walked away from the table and crouched near the water. She dipped her fingers in it and small circles formed on the surface, and one of the flowers floated next to Valkyrie.

It was a pink, unopened flower. Valkyrie touched one of the petals and brought the flower closer to her. When she did, images flashed in her head: A red-headed child playing with a doll; the same child, but now older, summoning a flame. They seemed so vivid, like if Valkyrie had been there when these things happened. Valkyrie she should stop touching the flower, but instead, she griped it harder.

More images came: the red-headed woman talking to 3 Cleaver, signing papers, fighting a vampire, dancing in a ball with a man with purple eyes. Valkyrie knew that woman's name: it was Camille Dome. She knew the name of the man with purple eyes, she felt the pain of the bruises the vampire had left in her; she had been there. She didn't know how, but she had.

Valkyrie let go of the flower and saw that blue lights were coming from the flower and were flying around her. They formed the image of a woman; Camille. Her image was completely mesmerizing. She had a warm smile and her arm was inches away from Valkyrie's face, but not in a dangerous intention. She was offering her arm to her, and Valkyrie was going to grab it. The lights began to dance more frenetically, the whole room had disappeared. Valkyrie was only a few inches away from the pale ghost, only a few more…

A hand suddenly pulled her away for the water. The image of Camille faded away along with lights. Skulduggery crouched next to her, holding her shoulders.

-Are you alright?

-What…what was that thing?

He pointed to the flower, which was now floating far away from them. Valkyrie remembered the images she had seen and suddenly realized something: Camille had been there. She had asked Kurt to see her future.

-That's what he does with the bits of the souls that are trapped on the cards, isn't it? He dumps them of the flowers.

Skulduggery nodded.

-The images you saw were part of that person's memories. Those lights were the bits of the soul, and they formed an image of their owner. This is why many people come to this place; it gives them a chance to preserve themselves forever, and to also see those they have lost. It's a very dangerous thing. I've seen people go mad because they forgot reality and got drunk on those memories.

Skulduggery helped her up and they left the casino without saying goodbye to Kurt. The images of Camille's memories still flashed in Valkyrie's head; she had to remember to so some research about her later. There was a latent pain on her head, and the fact that Skulduggery was walking very fast and almost dragging her was not helping.

-Skulduggery, calm down!

-Sorry, Valkyrie. I know you're not feeling well, but we it is better that we get out of here as soon as possible.

-Why?

He didn't respond. When they got to the Bentley, he immediately opened the door and got in, but Valkyrie didn't. Kurt was standing at the entrance to the casino, signaling with his hand that he wanted to talk to her. She turned to Skulduggery:

-It will just be a while.

-You are sure?

-What do you think he's going to do, kidnap me? It won't be long, I promise.

She walked over to where Kurt was standing. He wasn't smiling, but there was something on his face that seemed way too happy for a situation like this.

-Sorry about the…incident back there, _chéri_. I assumed Skulduggery had warned you.

-He didn't. He didn't even tell me what this place was.

-It's no surprise. He doesn't like it here. Tell me, Valkyrie, did Skulduggery ever tell you about his family?

-No. I never asked.

-But you want to. You're a curious girl; I can see it in your eyes.

He spread his arm, as if embracing the casino.

-I get most of my money because people come here to remember what the rest of the world forgot. No matter how much he tries to deny it, Skulduggery still has a human spirit. You and I are probably the only people on the Earth who know _everything_ about him.

-What to do you mean by ''everything''…?

-Don't play games with me, kid. Don't you think I don't look at those memories? Anyway, Skulduggery used to come here a lot after he finished playing necromancer. He came here to visit his wife. Not only did he get to see her, but he got to remember how he once was.

-His _wife_ is in one of those flowers?!

-Indeed she is. Quite the beauty, too. Her name was Madeleine; Madeleine Mir. I lost count of how many times I saw Skulduggery dream inside that garden. Dream with her, with the life he had before.

-Then what happened? What made him change?

-He woke up. It wasn't pretty, but he did. Valkyrie, if I asked, would you do me a favor? Something for Skulduggery?

-Anything. Everything.

-Stick with him, no matter what. He's a pessimist, always thinking the World is against him. You're holding by a leash, and if you let go, we are all doomed. So please, Valkyrie, _please_ try not to die.

She smiled.

-Don't worry. In the last 5 years, I've grown quite good at that.

* * *

**Hellooooooooooooooooooooooo, beautiful people! Sorry it took me so long to update :( I have a few things to say(does somebody even READS these things?):**

**1- TO MUCH DIALOGUE! Argh, I need to stop doing that!**

**2-Kurt's name is horrible, I know, but it was the only thing I could think of. Also, his last name(Oswin) was inspired by that Doctor Who character, Clara Oswin. I don't watch the show, but when I started the chapter, I liked the name and I like her(I know what happens to her), so...**

**3-About the whole ''Valkyrie's sign'' thing: I had no idea when her birthday is. I read somewhere that Derek confirmed her birthday was in August(I freaked out because MY birthday is in August), so she could be either a Leo(best sign ever) or a Virgo. In my opinion, she is much more Virgo then Leo, so that ended up being her sign(it WOULD be nice if we got to know her birthday, tough).**

**4-Everyone seems to know about Vile, huh? Wonder how that will end up for Skul...**

**5-Crap, I forgot what I was going to write...**

**6-I REMEMBERED! I can't tell whom Ghost Boy is, but here's a hint: we've heard about him A LOT. Like, IN EVERY SINGLE BOOK. If you feel like it, post whom you think he is on your reviews. You're probably not going to get it right, but I'm still curious.**


	7. Siblings Fight

They drove back to Dublin in silence. The consultation with Kurt had proved useless, but Valkyrie's curiosity had begun to eat her from the inside. Why would Skulduggery drag her to that place? The card dealer hadn't revealed anything interesting, and she had been so mesmerized by the flowers that she had forgotten to ask why the sign on the card wasn't hers. Drunk on memories, Skulduggery had said. Indeed, the effect certainly was the same.

-Skulduggery, - she asked, breaking the silence – how does that guy see the future? All he did was show me a card.

-I don't know how he does it. All that talk about webs and signs are lies. Those cards are Soul Catchers, and he uses some forgotten technique to form the images. He may seem like a Sensitive, but he's actually a mortal who's good with magical artifacts and lying.

-Then why did you drag us there?

-Because I thought he might give us some information, but I was wrong. It's been a long time since I last saw him, and I suppose my memory is a bit rusted.

He was lying, of course. When they needed information, they went to China, but China had stopped existing for them. Skulduggery knew that she knew, but said nothing. They drove a little longer until she decided to speak again:

-That casino was pretty crowded.

-Kurt was quite famous when he began his work. As I said before, he's a good liar, and the idea that he could mend people's souls, the very source of our magic, made him one of the most famous mages in history. Even Mevolent went to visit him once.

-But can he do it? He really _can _mess up with people's souls?

-He can, but not enough to, say, transform someone into an awe-powerful mage. He can only do parlor tricks, and why he keeps those flowers there, I have no idea.

-He told me it was like talking to the dead. People go there to see loved ones they've lost, like a wife, for example.

He, of course, said nothing. Valkyrie respected him, but respect comes with trust.

-You should have told me.

-Should I?

-Yes, you should. It's not fair that you know everything about me, even when I don't want to tell you, and you still keep stuff from me. I hate it when people keep stuff from me.

-You sound…angry.

-Lack of sleep and near-death experiences do that to a girl, but that doesn't matter. _Don't _ keep stuff from me again, even if it's something stupid, okay?

He nodded and after Valkyrie was satisfied, she went into a deep silence, turning her face to the window. She didn't talk or move, but he knew she wasn't asleep. Even when he dropped her off at Gordon's, she only muttered a quiet ''bye'' and ran for the house. The rain had transformed the garden into a mud trap, but Valkyrie simply took off her boots and dropped her coat on the floor. After making tea on the kitchen and siting on a comfortable couch, she remembered the visions in Kurt's garden. There was something wrong about that place. The memories she had seen had been so real, and they were happy and exciting ones; she still felt the adrenaline and rush of the flowers, but when they ended, she felt sick to her stomach. After experiencing a bit of someone else's soul, no matter how small it was, she felt wrong. Like the body she was wearing right now, her feeling s and memories, didn't belong to her. Camille's hair came into view and the vision of the red mess made Valkyrie fell safe, but soon the feeling was gone. Those flowers were literally drugs, and there had been a time in SKulduggery's life in which he had _depended _upon it. How could he? How did handle the feeling of being wrong? Of not belonging to yourself, but to a person who might be dead? One really had to be anything but human to survive something like that.

Slowly, she regained her breath. Her name was Valkyrie Cain, she was not a redhead, and she had never kissed anyone with purple eyes. Just to be safe, she checked a small mirror hidden among the paintings in the mansion. There it was: black hair, brown eyes, and, of course, the white monster standing behind her.

Who has never yelled at a horror movie character? Things like ''don't go in that door!'' or ''look behind you!'' were pretty common, but really, the shock of seeing something dead and dismembered standing behind you was enough to scare everyone. She didn't move, instead looking at the image in the mirror. It slowly disappeared, but even so Valkyrie looked around the room as she stepped away from the reflective surface, looking for signs that the white stranger had really been there, and was not just some drugged girl's hallucination. Nothing white came into view, so she proceeded to go up the stairs.

Step by step, she reached the top. It was high enough to give her a full view of the room, even if she was looking the other way. If it had been Darquesse or just her keen senses that had warned her, she didn't know, but there was someone on the room with her. The stranger had been following her since the casino and had apparently waited for Valkyrie to recuperate from the flower-drug. How polite.

-Hey buddy, - she managed to say - whoever you are, not now. Now not, okay? I'm tired, angry and still a little drugged. This place is my house, so I seriously recommend you leave.

A few seconds later, she heard a noise. Barely noticeable, it happened fast. The sound of boots on the wooden floor. Darquesse warned her to turn around, and she breather heavily before doing so. Tanith Low was standing where the stairs started, her blonde hair acting almost like a bar of gold on a coal mine. She was alone and worst, smiling. There was no sight off the white stranger.

-Val, you look so big. You've grown a lot since I last saw you.

-Tanith.

-Glad you remember my name. Say, you don't look well. Did Skulduggery do something to you?

-What do you want?

-Calm down, Ice Queen. I just want to talk. Don't you want to hug me? I want to hug you. I was expecting a warmer reunion.

She had not lied. The Remnant spends most of its time imaging how Valkyrie would react to its presence, but she seemed calm, tired. Cold even.

-I was drugged, I'm not in the mood for hugs. And the day I talk to you will be the day I'm talking to the _real _Tanith, not a psychopathic puff of smoke.

-That's no way to talk to your sister.

-Siblings fight. You're the one that taught me that.

The shadows flew directly at Tanith, but Valkyrie didn't have time to see if they had hit her or not. She just ran down the corridor, entering door after door until she reached a dead end and had to go back again. She was in no shape for a fight and, well, this was THE Tanith Low. Valkyrie couldn't hide, but she couldn't win; even after all the training with SKulduggery, she knew that. Tanith was waiting for her in the ball room, sword in hand.

-I don't want to fight you, Val. I don't want to hurt you and you won't hurt me.

-No, you won't hurt Darquesse and I won't hurt the real Tanith. I don't care about you.

-You always were a terrible liar.

It was hard to know what exactly had destroyed the room: Tanith's sword or Valkyrie's shadows. The girls danced a dance of blood and sweat, even if the odds were against Valkyrie. She delivered blows, kicks, punches and all the movements she knew. Using fire was out of the question, as it could burn down the house. Shadows flew everywhere, crashing into windows and tables and chairs, but never Tantih. After easily dodging all the blows, she gripped Valkyrie from behind, taking something silver out of her pocket. Valkyrie pushed the air like never before, and although Tanith wasn't wounded when she flew backwards and landed on the other side of the room, it gave Valkyrie enough time to run. She reached a small courtyard located on the back of the house, trying to make it to the woods. If only she hadn't dropped her coat, she could call Skulduggery, but she was alone for now. The exit to the woods was only a few steps away. According to local legend, there used be a cemetery on that very spot and if someone wanted to go past it, they had to mutter a strange incantation. Silly people, there were no dead people there.

But, of course, the legend did not say anything about Texans. The hands gripped Valkyrie's foot, making her fall and fell an excruciating pain on her arm. She tried to get up, but it proved impossible. Her head was spinning, as she had hit it when she fell, but it wasn't just that. She recognized Sanguine's face as he reached back for the surface and kicked her ribs so she wouldn't move. Tanith and the White Cleaver came soon after, and both of them helped hold her as a fourth figure took something from Tanith's pocket and applied it on Valkyrie's neck. She tried to fight while the syringe penetrated her skin, but it was of no use. Drugged again, but fortunately this one had nothing to do with flowers.

-No…won't have…her – she managed to mutter as her vision blackened – Go…let me…go…

The Cleaver dropped her and Tanith gently picked her up, stroking her hair as a mother would do to her child. Valkyrie's hand went forward, trying to reach her lost friend, whispering her name like a prayer. Her eyes closed and she drifted back to the darkness. The four figures held hands and soon disappeared into the earth, leaving the manor in a state of disorder and chaos and parting with was the perhaps its most carefully guarded and precious treasure.

* * *

Kitana looked at the street below her. It was full of cars, buildings and people, all of whom belonged to her. Her ''mother'' had given her all those toys, and, like all spoiled children, she was not about to share them with others. There were 5 or 6 teenagers with her, but they seemed more interested in how long they could make each other's head swallow without blowing it up. There was a kid, Jeff, who unfortunately got a little carried away and ended up smashing a girl all the way to the half of her neck. Bits of brain, blood and gore covered the others, and they started cheering like mad. A few of them got tangled in Kitana's blond, curly hair, so she blew up Jeff's head without turning around. The laughter died and the remaining 4 teenagers looked at her, remembering who was in charge.

-See that? –Kitana pointed to the city below her – That's ours. As you know, we've been given orders, and our orders are to go and _have fun_.

-What do you mean? – asked one of the girls.

-Let me show you.

She closed her eyes and focused, and a few minutes later she was already floating in the air. She was the only one who could do that, so the other followed her with their eyes as she landed on an alley close to the building they were in. Everyone in the alley turned to look at her, but soon stopped paying attention. They had seen many things in the state they were currently in, and flying girls were rather common. Kitana simply smiled and approached one of the dealers.

-Hey babe – he said to her – Want something? I may be able to lower the price for such a pretty girl and-

He got cut off when Kitana kissed directly on the lips. When the shock was over, the dealer kissed her back, and soon he had his hands around her waist and his tongue in her mouth. The other teenagers had come down from the building and were looking rather surprised. Were they supposed to kiss people?

When Kitana was finished with the dealer, she snapped his neck. He didn't even have to scream, but all the other people in the alley looked at her. One of them tried to attack her, but Kitana summoned a flame and laughed as he burned to her death. The people tried to run, but she killed them one by one. Sometimes she did something simple, like crushing their lungs, but other times she preferred to walk up to them and do the job herself. When she was over, there was only one woman left. She was crying for her mom and praying, and Kitana was just about to snap her bones when she had a better idea. She made the woman float just above where the others were, and the woman began to cry even louder.

-My, my – Kitana said – I'm sorry. I suppose I got a little carried away. We only have one doll left, and there are 4 of you. What do we do now? How do you think we should resolve this situation?

They said nothing, but some of them hopped a little, trying to catch the woman's foot.

-Well, it's simple. We split the doll up.

There was a sound of crushing bones as the woman's arm snapped. She screamed louder than before and passed out, but Kitana waked her up again. The teenagers still had no idea what to do, so Kitana snapped her other arm. She yanked both of them at once and dropped them on the floor. The teenagers began to jump and whistle, and preceded to thorn the fallen limbs even more.

-See? – Said Kitana – Fun.

She left to look for more toys, leaving the others to their fun. They glued the woman's arm back together only to yank them back again, and once the toy was beyond saving, they went after their leader. They played until sundown and slept peacefully when they returned to the base. Kitana watched them for a while before smashing their hearts. Lady sat down with her creation and took a sip of her tea.

-Dear me, why did you do that?

-You said I would get more.

-You will, in time. They should be ready in about 3 hours.

The recently-deceased teenagers were faults. They were not like Kitana, who could be compared to a god. They were only the first phase of the experiment, and the others would arrive soon after.

-You should have seen them. They looked like wild dogs. I thing they would have _eaten _some of the corpses if I had let them.

-Are you calling yourself classy?

-No, I'm calling myself better. They're not so much fun as they were before. Can't you give me something better?

-Soon, my dear, soon. I know you're impatient, but…I think I might have something to entertain you for a while.

-Seriously? What?

Lady handed her two photos, and when Kitana looked at them, she thought that it was a joke.

-Is this for real?

-Indeed.

-Wow…you sorcerers are _messed up_.

-Do you want them or not?

-Sure, whatever. Where can I find them?

-They spend most of the time in an old, black car. It will be easy to track down. Oh, and take some people with. They are harder than they look.

-Sure.

Kitana left the compound with 3 others. They were the strongest ones Lady had in stock, but were not enough. They still felt the dizziness, nausea and pain from the experiment, and looked like a bunch of babies still learning how to walk. When one of them tripped and claimed he couldn't go on, Kitana kissed him for a long time until he suddenly proclaimed he was better. He walked side by side with her, hand in her waist. He was hot enough, so Kitana let him touch her.

-Where are we going? – He asked.

She explained to him that they were going after a skeleton and his partner, but soon warned the others of her condition:

-Do whatever you want with the skeleton. Turn his bones to dust if you want, but the girl is _mine_. Anyone who gets near her gets their hand cut off, understand?

They nodded and she smiled. Singing a song about love, she watched the starry night sky and wondered if they were shining for her. Or maybe it was just the helicopters flying to the central part of Dublin. The bodies had been discovered, and the city was at war.

* * *

Clara Wolf had spent her entire life hearing about Ireland and the people who lived there. She knew it was considered to be the Cradle of Magic; that it was home for many famous sorcerers like Skulduggery Pleasant; it rained a lot and it was full of leprechauns, pots of gold at the end of rainbows and people wearing green hats.

Ok, so maybe she did now know everything about Ireland, but when one spends their entire life hearing about how something is, that's what they end up believing in, even though she knew it was wrong. She had not spoken a word since they left the airport, even when Rodrigo started blabbering about how important it was that she made a good impression. She had grown up in one of the biggest and most populated cities in the world, full of tall buildings, traffic and all kinds of people running around. Dublin's low buildings and ancient architecture were beautiful, but also made her nervous. The city was hypnotizing, grey and it actually _smelled_ good. Rodrigo, noticing his young apprentice's obsession, smiled.

-Beautiful, right?

-Yeah, but strange too. It feels like were inside a medieval castle. And the people here are _weird_. They seem so dull and grey, like they're sad at something.

-That was my first impression, too. At first, most of Europe seems like this, but it gets better.

-Even so, I still think they're a little odd. They look like they need a party, a big one.

-You _do_ know some people think we live in the middle of the jungle and that we party all the time, right?

-And we think they're a bunch of little people in green hat carrying pots of gold, so I guess that evens the odds.

Rodrigo laughed and soon, she began to laugh too. He felt sorry for Skulduggery; if they got to meet him, Clara would teach him some thing or another about clever remarks. She was easy on Rodrigo because he was her master, but she had once made an Elder from the American Sanctuary cry in less than 3 minutes of conversations. The Irish were in for a treat.

After an hour and a half of being stuck in a limousine, they arrived on Roarhaven. Rodrigo had been there only once before, and it seemed the same as always.

-Stay close to me, - he told Clara – at least until we get inside the Sanctuary.

-Why?

-Because this village in dangerous. There are people here who would do bad things to a teenage girl.

-Would they kill me?

-Probably.

-Well, they can do whatever they want with me, as long as they don't mess up my hair. It took me five minutes to untie all the knots. Speaking of it how _is_ my hair?

-It's good.

-Excellent. I'm ready to be brutally murdered now. Shall we go?

They entered the Sanctuary and, as they walked, Rodrigo pointed discretely to people and whispered their names. Clara laughed quietly as she imagined what the names would sound like in her language. There were many people and many, many rooms. The Irish Sanctuary was certainly bigger than back home, but the people weren't as weird. She felt like a lady with her green-grey shirt and all-stars jeans and dark-brown hair, but here she felt…normal. She honestly didn't know if Ireland was too normal or if she and Rodrigo were too weird.

They stopped in front of an office and soon after, a young, handsome man came to greet them and he and Rodrigo shook hands. Was _that_ the Grand Mage? Definitely one more thing to add to the ''why I love magic'' list. He and Rodrigo shook hands and began to talk about some war story or another, but all the time Clara observed the room.

''_The first thing to do when you go into a room is to search for a way out, and how to reach it.'' _ It was one of the many advices Rodrigo had given her since she began her apprenticeship at age 8, and they had all saved her life until. She watched Erskine Ravel carefully; his appearance; the movements he made while he spoke; and she even closed her eyes to see how he smelled.

''_Seeing only with your eyes is dangerous. When the eye sees something it does not understand, it makes us uncomfortable. Discomfort leads to fear; fear leads to panic; panic leads to despair; despair leads to death; death leads to failure; failure leads to shame; shame leads to vulnerability; and vulnerability leads to suffering, which, sometimes, cannot even be stopped by death.''_

Ravel was reckless, egocentric and anxious, but he was also brave when the situation called for it, and he did job without complaining, even though he hated it. Something had been bothering recently, something big enough to take his sleep for at least 2 days. He used strong cologne to disguise a strange smell. The collar of his robe was loose, as he couldn't wait to take it off. He had a wound on his left arm that still oozed a little blood. More likely it had been caused by broken glass, as from where she was standing, Clara could see the wound was irregular and not to deep, so it couldn't had been caused by a knife. He had been attack by surprised, but whoever did it only wanted to scare him. It must have been a very important or trustworthy person, as Ravel did not fought back, or else he would have sustained more injuries. Someone in that place was blackmailing and/or trying to intimidate him.

And she realized all that without messing her hair or left her silly fourteen-years-old smile fade from her childlike face. Rodrigo introduced the both of them, Ravel kissed her hand, she did a small courtesy, stuttered a little to look like and innocent child and _voila_, one of the most powerful men on Earth was theirs. As Ravel showed the Sanctuary to them while leading them to his office, Rodrigo winked at her:

_See anything interesting?_

_Maybe. Do you think there's anyone here capable of hurting him without the Cleaver's intervention?_

_Someone important, like one of the higher officials or even the other two Elders. He won't tell me, and looking around would be too dangerous, but I think I know someone who can help._

_What about Bespoke and …_her_? Won't they get in our way?_

_Don't worry; I won't let _her _near you. But you need to stop calling her that. She has a name, you know._

_Yes, and I'm not getting anywhere near her. I'd rather face a troll._

-We've arrived – said Ravel, interrupting their conversation. They sat on the leather chairs, but Clara did not take her eyes off the door. She waited until Ravel began to talk to pay attention again.

-You _do_ why you're here, don't you? – He asked.

-Rumors travel fast back home, Grand Mage, – Said Rodrigo - you know that. But that's all we have. Rumors.

He told them his suspicions and his fears. Clara listened carefully while he mentioned names she'd head a thousand times and one that did not exist but a few seconds ago on her mind. The sea of names was growing deeper and stormy, until one particular wave made Clara lose the air in her lungs.

-Wait a minute, - she said as she got up from her chair – you can't be serious!

-I am very serious, Miss Wolf.

- But…that's insane! Grand Mage, with all due respect, you can't expect us to kill _her_! That would be the same as initiating a Civil War!

-Which is why I trust you do to this quietly. And you don't have to kill her, not yet anyway. Only when she becomes a nuisance.

-Ravel, -said Rodrigo – we may kill people one time or another, but that doesn't make us bodyguards. If and when _she _does something suspicious, we will try our best do solve it, but you know a war can't be avoided.

-I know that, thank you very much. People are starting to talk revolt, Rodrigo. It's not just Ireland on the line, you know that. Another war would break the iceberg for good.

-You mean… - said Clara, remembering the stories she heard about the first war. Things had been done to ensure that the Magical World continued to be secret, terrible things. Alas, they were necessary, even if had meant death and suffering for mortals. – We might now make it through this one? The mortals will find us out for good?

-I don't know. We can't have that; it would mean death for sorcerers.

-Not exactly – said Clara.

-What do you mean?

-If what you said is true, those people are smart. Like, really smart. They wouldn't organize a revolution without considering mortal intervention. If they are doing this, it's because they plan to they control of governments around the world, most likely to make sorcerers rule everything. Anyone with a significant amount of power could be on it…even you, Grand Mage. But, knowing Ireland's situation right now, this would remove you guys from ultimate power in the magical world. If this revolution happens, the American Sanctuary is in on it. Perhaps they're even the leaders, but that still doesn't change the fact that they need some people here. Send us a list of everyone who has done any work for the Sanctuary in the last 7 years and maybe we can work something out. Oh, and do keep an eye on that Tipstaff guy, the one that drove us here. He has a pigeon tattoo on his right arm, don't you think that's kind of suspicious?

-Clara-

-Don't interrupt me. I'm the one who wears the pants in this relationship, remember? Pigeons _are _evil, Rodrigo_! _Remember New York? They spread diseases, poop on people and they eat _everything_! Even rocks! Rocks, for God's sakes! Anyway, I think we're done here. We already know what to do: spy on the creepy Elder, kill her if necessary and oh, possibly try to avoid a war that could bring about the destruction of mortal government and the revelation of magic to the world, we get it. Ro, can we go now? I'm seriously tired, and I still need to buy another umbrella, and _you're _the one paying for it. You lost mine back in Moscow, and yes, it _has_ to be orange. Now, if you excuse me, I'm leaving.

She got up and left the room, leaving a shocked Ravel behind. Rodrigo soon got as well, as smiled to Ravel before following his young apprentice:

-Well, you've heard the boss. Goodbye, Erskine. You will hear from us soon.

Later, when there nothing else for him to do, Ravel remembered why he didn't like diplomats. They were usually hired to avoid political incidents, and were allowed to perform murder, robbery, torture and anything else that was needed to avoid another war. They operated in the underworld of the underworld, which was a thousand times worse than anything Skulduggery had ever seen in his career as prime detective. They had all kind of political immunities possible, not to the mention the ability to walk out on a Grand Mage.

-This is why I hate this job – Ravel thought – Fighting is so much easier! Just stick the pointy part of a sword into someone's stomach, and if they don't bleed, do it again! They say the pen is mightier than the sword, and they are right! Dying of boredom is way more painful than dying of a perforated stomach.

* * *

When they arrived in their hotel, orange umbrella in hand, Clara and Rodrigo began to plot the murder of one of the most powerful women on the Earth.

They spend about an hour organizing the basics: acquiring information on the target and her associates, planning disguises, choosing a weapon (if it was necessary) and, of course, destroying anything that could connect any suspicious activities to them. As they were in the process of destroying a bunch of fake Indian passports, Clara suddenly had a realization:

-You know, that was some pretty great acting I did back there.

-You were acting?

-Of course I was! The ''crazy girl'' is my favorite, you know that!

-But you _do _hate pigeons.

-I do.

-And you _did _want an orange umbrella.

-I did.

-And you _are _crazy.

-The best way to act is not to act at all – she opened a big smile, but it soon faded away – Are we really doing what this Ravel guy asked?

-Of course not. That, my dear girl, you be a very stupid decision. We're going after someone else.

-But then why-

-Because he had 3 guys follow us, and they're watching us through the window as we speak. If we seemed to be doing what they wanted us to, they wouldn't bother to kill us. The best way to act is not to act at all.

-God, you managed to steal my extremely clever quote and use it in _another _quote exactly 15 seconds after I said it. Either you have no creativity or you're a freaking genius.

-Maybe I'm both. Now, pass me my gun, will you? I need to take care of those guys outside.

-Just be quick about it. – She said as she passed him the gun – You know I hate the noise that thing makes. My ears always ring for days.

He finished charging the gun and soon went downstairs, leaving Clara alone. For a few minutes, she wondered what their next target would be, or even if they would get to kill anyone at all. As a child, she had always noticed that the death of one important person always had more impact than the death one thousands of others who, according to these important people, never did nothing at all. They weren't leaders or celebrities or militaries, so what good was their existence? But, in the end, it was always the important people that ended up with a cut from Rodrigo's knife in their throats, or a pinch of her Moroccan poison in their coffee. Maybe they should just let a war happen after all, so that way, everyone would have to fight and die a ''useful death'', or maybe everyone in the world would die and there would be nobody to judge it they had died a useful death or not. Maybe…

However, a comfortable bed is not a very good place to have deep thoughts, especially when one is wearing a warm coat and it is raining outside. Clara soon fell asleep and dreamt of killing spiders with orange umbrellas and young and hot Grand Mages. One time, she thought she heard three bang noises, but they weren't enough to disturb her. Murders and save the world-missions can seem very insignificant to a teenage girl when she's dreaming of hot abs, even if she lives on a world about to be destroyed by psychopathic sorcerers.


End file.
